Chipotle Maple Butternut Squash Soup

From the name, you can tell that this Chipotle Maple Butternut Squash Soup has it all.

(Well...you know...soup-wise.)

A little bit spicy.

A little bit sweet.

Incredibly, ridiculously, lusciously creamy.

It's serious velvety Heaven in a bowl, and perfect for those frigid winter days that are quickly and unrelentingly barreling our way.

[Note: if you're currently in Miami or Arizona or Melbourne or some other deliciously warm place, crank up that air conditioning and you'll know what I mean. Also, can I come visit? Please? I'll bring cake!]

I love butternut squash soup, but my usual objection is that some places tend to make it so sweet that it tastes like candy. I'm usually really hesitant to order it at restaurants for this exact reason. I prefer soups with a spicy, savory edge, and just a tiny hint of sweetness...so that's what I did here!

This one is really easy. The most complicated part is really just cutting up the butternut squash. It's not hard, really, but it takes a bit of muscle. I'll be honest and say that I usually buy fresh squash pre-cut from the store. It's a bit more expensive, but I'm much more likely to actually use it when I do it that way.

If I buy the full squash, it sort of sits and languishes for weeks until I have to throw it out because every time I look at it, I'm all like "Ugh! I don't want to deal with that!"

So I encourage you do what works best for you. Nothing more expensive than totally wasted food!

A quick ingredient note. The recipe below uses chicken broth and heavy cream, but you can also substitute vegetable broth and full-fat canned coconut milk for vegan and/or dairy free versions. Note that I would not recommend using a less-fatty milk like almond, soy, or boxed coconut milk, as that won't give you the same level of richness.